Senior geology major Jessica Eicher stands under a starry sky on a mile February night near the Fairbanks campus. Eicher is one of 1,058 finalists from among more than 200,000 people who applied to join the Mars One mission. Mars One, a nonprofit based in The Netherlands, wants to begin sending groups of four individuals on one-way trips to the Red Planet starting in 2025. "Once on Mars there are no means to return to Earth. Mars is home," the group's website explains.

CNSMfemalenightstarswinterstudentCollege of Natural Science and MathematicsMars One